Queen of Diamonds
by Natural Logarhythm
Summary: What if Jafar was too late finding the Diamond in the Rough? An AU where Aladdin and Jasmine make good their escape, and this time Jasmine is the one doing the lying.
1. 2 of Hearts

**Summary: What if Jafar was too late finding the 'Diamond in the Rough?' An AU where Aladdin and Jasmine make good their escape, and this time Jasmine is the one doing the lying.**

**A/N: Yep, this is a 'What if?' AU. It was interesting to me that in the movie, Jasmine also lies to Aladdin about her identity for, like, a day, but she gets off scot-free, while Aladdin is the one who struggles with whether to tell the truth and gets all the blame for lying. Also, Jasmine only gets the freedom she so desires for a day. So I wondered what would happen if Jasmine weren't forced to reveal herself so soon. Would she also be tempted to pass herself off as something she's not, as Aladdin was? This story explores how this would change the plot and how our heroes develop. The only pairing is Aladdin/Jasmine. I will admit, it's a bit darker and more mature than the movie, and borrows a few elements from the musical and the original tale as well (though not the TV series—never seen it). If you're still interested after this slightly expanded summary, then please continue, dear reader…**

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><p>"<em>Seek me out the Diamond in the Rough."<em>

"What the heck is that supposed to mean?! How can a _diamond_ go in after the treasure? It's an inanimate object! I think that cat has been in the sand way too long—"

"Quiet yourself, Iago, or I shall lose my patience. I am trying to divine a solution to this little predicament."

As far as Jafar was concerned, Iago was being willfully ignorant, and he hadn't the time or inclination to disabuse him of his erroneous conclusions. That birdbrained…_bird_ could continue to be confused until he decided to wise up and use the brains sorcery had gifted him with. He continued working through the necessary calculations in blessed silence. To Jafar, it couldn't be clearer that the guardian of the Cave of Wonders was referring to a person—a very specific person, at that—and this business about the 'Diamond in the Rough' was merely a figure of speech. But how to _find_ this individual? It could be anyone, anyone in the whole world.

Well, not _anyone_. It had to be 'one whose worth lies far within.' That along with the particular figure of speech used implied that it was a person who was of good moral character, but had fallen on hard times—someone whose appearance and social circumstances were at odds with their potential. Still though, there were so many possibilities that fit this description that one could travel for years and not manage to find the one he sought.

But now, after many hours of poring through books and scrolls detailing obscure branches of sorcery, Jafar thought he had an answer. It wasn't perfect, but it would have to do. It would, of course, require him to obtain the Sultan's ring, which should not be difficult. He had found over the years that the Sultan was susceptible to hypnosis.

The hard part was going to be the lightning. Agrabah being located in a semi-arid climate, thunderstorms did not often occur. Such a storm might transpire once a year during the rainy season if they were lucky. Fortunately for him, the rainy season was about to begin. And when it did, Jafar would be prepared to capture this precious resource.

Jafar finally stood from his seat. "Come, Iago, we have much to do in preparation."

"So now are you gonna tell me what's going on? You shouldn't keep me in the dark, Jafar. How am I supposed to help out if you never tell me anything?"

"Oh, my feathered friend, I do apologize. I assumed that even someone of your humble mental faculties would be able to grasp the essentials of the situation."

Jafar swept out of the room, laughing at Iago's indignant squawk. Despite the difficulties of the current circumstances, he was in a good mood. He would triumph despite the obstacles. He always had.

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><p>If she were being honest with herself, Jasmine had to admit that the view of the palace from here was really beautiful. It was just too bad that she couldn't bring herself to look at it without also summoning the anger, guilt, and sadness she felt about her life there and her ultimate decision to leave it. Seeing the look on Aladdin's face as he wondered innocently what it would be like to live there was the last straw.<p>

"_Sure._ People who tell you where to go or how to dress," she responded, bitterness evident in her voice.

The boy looked surprised. "Huh, it's better than here. You're always scraping for food and ducking the guards."

Jasmine was only half listening to him though, still deep in self-pity. "You're not free to make your own choices."

"Sometimes you feel so..."

"You're just…"

"_Trapped_."

Hearing their simultaneous pronunciation of the last word, Jasmine looked up at the boy and answered his smile with one of her own. It was nice to know that there was someone in this world who understood what she was feeling.

Her new friend cleared his throat and grabbed an apple from his monkey, rolling it down his shoulder and bumping it off his elbow to her. "So, where're you from?"

She smiled a bit at the gesture, but it quickly faded in light of his question. "What does it matter? I ran away and I am _not_ going back."

"Really? How come?" He came to sit next to her, concern evident on his features.

She sighed. She wanted to tell him the truth—or part of the truth anyway. It was nice to have a sympathetic ear for once. "My father's forcing me to get married."

"Oh, that's—that's _awful_." The boy's eyes widened in shock. She couldn't have agreed more. Not that getting married in and of itself was terrible, but an arranged, political marriage to a man she neither knew nor loved? She didn't want that. She feared it. She didn't want to admit to being afraid of anything, but it was this fear that had led her to drive her suitors away before even giving them a real chance.

She was pulled out of her thoughts as the boy suddenly yelled, "Abu!" The monkey was putting up a fuss about something, chattering and scolding as he raced back to his perch on the broken wall.

Jasmine was curious what all the fuss was about. "What?"

The boy turned away from glaring at the monkey. "Uh, Abu says, uh…that's not fair."

Jasmine smiled. She hadn't needed to see the light come on in the boy's eyes as he thought of a response or the shock on the monkey's face to know that this wasn't quite the truth. "Oh did he?" She glanced up at him playfully.

"Yeah! Of course."

"And does _Abu_ have anything else to say?"

"Well uh, he wishes there was something he could do to help," the charming boy responded as he moved closer. Jasmine felt her heart rate increase at his proximity, as it had almost ever since he had walked into her life that day.

Jasmine glanced down, and in that moment realized what she wanted and found the courage to act on it. She looked back up into his eyes. "Tell him that's very…sweet." She felt her face grow warm as the boy moved even closer. Her eyes fell shut.

Jasmine's first kiss was chaste and sweet, the press of the boy's lips against hers gentle and warm. It left her wanting more, but she let it end there, for now.

It wasn't until much later, curled up for the night in the boy's arms on a blanket on the floor, that she realized that she didn't even know his name.


	2. Three of a Kind

**A/N: I welcome all forms of reviews and comments on my stories, critical or otherwise. But please be polite, whatever you have to say. I'm more inclined to return the favor if you are. (And many thanks to my first two reviewers for their encouraging comments—you know who you are!)**

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><p>Aladdin sighed and let his head fall back against the narrow alley wall behind him. Why had he even <em>come<em> to the market this early? The merchants were only just setting up their stalls, and they would surely see him if he tried to steal anything. He would have to wait for the market to be busier, when they would be distracted by legitimate customers. He usually wasn't even awake yet. However, there was one thing to be said for the empty streets: they were quiet. And maybe Aladdin had some thinking to do.

Aladdin had no idea _what_ he'd been thinking last night. What was he _doing_ with this girl? She had needed help, yes, that much was clear, and she was pretty—no, _beautiful_—no doubt about that. But she was way out of his league! Judging by the way she had acted in the market yesterday (and by the size of her gold earrings), it was pretty clear to Aladdin that she came from money. And therein lay the inherent danger of the situation. Aladdin was already a petty thief who was pretty strongly disliked by most of the guards. Imagine if he were caught with this girl! Her evidently wealthy and overbearing father would probably have him executed.

However, he had meant what he said last night. He really did want to help her, and not just because she was beautiful. She needed help; she was in trouble! And her situation must be pretty severe to send her out into the streets without even money. But as dire as the situation may be, it was pretty clear that she had no idea what life on the streets entailed. Aladdin had no way of providing her with even the most basic of comforts she would have enjoyed at home. She would probably tire of such hardship sooner or later and return to where she had come from. Aladdin certainly wouldn't blame her. He just wished that it wouldn't have to come to that, for her sake. And of course, he'd like her to stay with him too…

He shook his head to clear his mind, running his fingers through his shaggy hair. He really shouldn't let himself get carried away with thinking of her. One way or the other, she wouldn't be around for long. The customers were finally beginning to appear, so maybe he should get his head on straight and find them some breakfast…

"Good morning."

"Whoa!" Aladdin jumped and spun around to see who had just sneaked up on him, only to find _her_ standing there, smiling. He smiled back. "Don't you know it's not nice to sneak up on people like that?"

She raised one eyebrow, still smiling. "Just making sure you're not letting your guard down."

"Well, you got me there. How'd you find me?"

"I followed him," she said, indicating above her head. Abu was perched on a windowsill one story up, clearly still sulking.

"Abu, let's go get some breakfast." Abu just cast Aladdin a malevolent glare and turned his back firmly upon him. "C'mon Abu, don't be that way. We'll get bananas, your favorite!"

As soon as Aladdin mentioned bananas, Abu sprang up, shrieking with delight, and was down on Aladdin's shoulder quick as lightning. He pulled impatiently at Aladdin's vest, trying to get him to move faster toward the banana cart.

"All right, I'm going, be patient!" Aladdin looked at the girl, who was trying to hold back her laughter. "Wait for us here; we'll be right back with breakfast."

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><p>Jasmine walked beside the boy who had befriended her with his monkey sitting on her shoulder and eating a banana. Abu had warmed up to her after she had found that he loved being scratched behind the ears and the boy had made a suitable show of repentance by letting him have all the bananas he wanted.<p>

"Are you sure that Abu can eat all those bananas?" She eyed the bunch that the boy was carrying.

"Oh, I'm sure someone will eat them," he replied. He broke another banana off the bunch and offered it to her.

"No thank you, I can't eat another bite," she said. Abu grabbed the proffered fruit instead, even though he'd already had four. "What's the plan for today?"

"Oh, well, we can do whatever you want. The city is our playground." He grinned.

Jasmine thought about it. "Hmm. Well, I haven't actually seen that much of the city yet. Any suggestions?"

"Hah, I could give you the full tour! But it would take days to see all of Agrabah."

She smiled. "Well, I have to start somewhere, don't I? And I'm not in any rush."

The boy's grin widened. "In that case, we'd better get started."

"Sounds perfect," Jasmine said.

The boy launched into an explanation of the layout of the city—as if Jasmine hadn't seen the birds'-eye view of it from the palace. She liked hearing him talk though. He was very animated in his willingness to help her get to know the city. And she did learn a few new things, mostly about the people. The boy was able to tell her what kind of people inhabited the various portions of the city, which is hard to tell from the distance of a palace tower.

While they were wandering, they passed by an old, crippled beggar man whom the boy greeted as a friend and gave a couple of bananas. The man cackled his appreciation as he began gnawing on one with his few remaining teeth. "Good, this! Soft food for a soft old mouth." His eyes turned to Jasmine and he winked. "And a lady that's easy on these old eyes! You're too good to me, boy!" He cackled again as she flushed.

The boy grinned sheepishly at her. "Don't mind that old cripple. He never learned any manners. And it's no use trying to teach him any either."

"Old dogs can't learn new tricks; don't you know that, boy?" The beggar turned back to Jasmine. "You hang on to this one and don't let him get away, you hear? He may not look like much, but he'll make you happy." He leered and winked again, and this time it was the boy's turn to blush.

"All right now, old man, if you can't keep a civil tongue in your head in the presence of a lady, we'll be moving on," the boy said as he steered Jasmine away, though his tone was still light.

"I'm just telling it like it is. You know me, boy—I'm too old to be much good at keeping my thoughts to myself."

"You're too old to be much good at anything!" the boy called back over his shoulder, still teasing. Jasmine could hear the beggar chuckling to himself as she and her new friend continued down the side street they were on.

They continued their leisurely tour of the city, but it wasn't long before they found themselves down another alley. The boy was telling a rather amusing story about the last time Abu had tried to steal bananas and had almost lost his tail, but he stopped mid-sentence and a complicated look crossed his face. He had recognized something, but…could it also be mixed with sadness? She followed his gaze and felt her mouth fall open and eyes widen in shock.

There in the shadows were two little urchins picking through the trash. The little girl could not have been more than six, and the boy was even younger. Their clothes were ragged and their bare feet and legs were filthy. As she watched, the boy found a piece of bread mostly covered in mold and brought it to the girl. She examined it, then shook her head and threw it away. The little boy sighed and they both turned to go. That's when the two children noticed they were being observed. At first they looked frightened, but when Jasmine's rescuer stepped forward, they seemed to recognize him and smiled. They let him come close to them, so Jasmine followed. Her friend handed the remainder of the bananas to the little girl, but instead of taking them, she hesitantly touched his right forearm, looking sad.

Jasmine had already noticed the half-healed weal that circled his forearm several times. She had asked him what had happened, but he'd shrugged it off. "I had a run-in with a horse's rear-end," he'd laughed.

Now he just smiled at the girl in that reassuring way of his. "Don't worry about it. It doesn't even hurt." He tried to hand her the bananas again, but she hesitated. "Go on, take them. We can't eat all these by ourselves. Abu doesn't even like bananas."

At this, Abu let out an indignant squawk and gave him a dirty look, but the monkey was too full by this time to properly chastise his master. The children giggled, and Jasmine smiled. Aladdin continued. "You see this pretty lady here? You'll make her very happy if you take these bananas off our hands for us." The children looked to Jasmine, who nodded and smiled.

Finally, the girl accepted the food. "Thank you," she whispered, "for everything." She looked like she might cry. The little boy launched himself forward and attacked his hero's leg in a hug.

The older boy was surprised at first, then he laughed. "Hey, don't mention it. That guy was a real jerk." He ruffled the child's hair and grinned down at him. The little boy smiled back and released the leg he had attached himself to.

Jasmine's new friend took her hand and began to lead her away. "You two take care, all right?" he called back, giving them that winning smile once again. The children waved, and he and Jasmine waved back.

Once they had turned the corner though, Jasmine's curiosity got the better of her. "So how did that _really_ happen?" she asked, indicating the wound on his arm.

The boy sighed. "Those two kids were playing—not really paying attention to where they were going—and they ran out into the street right in front of this rich jerk riding a horse. Well, the horse was startled and reared, and the man got mad. He brought up his whip and shouted, 'Out of my way, filthy brats!' Can you believe that? He was actually going to use a horsewhip on two innocent little kids!"

"That's awful!"

"Yeah, he was a real piece of work. Anyway, I ran out to stop him but only got there in time to catch the whip around my forearm. It stung pretty good, but at least I was in the perfect position then to yank that whip out of his hands."

"What did you do then?"

"I said, 'If I were as rich as you, I could afford some manners,' and I threw the whip back at him."

"I bet he didn't take that well."

"You could say that. He said, 'I'll teach you some manners!' and then he kicked me into a mud puddle. So as he rode away, I shouted, 'Hey, look at that, Abu! It's not every day you see a horse with two rear ends.'"

Jasmine smiled. "I bet that didn't go over too well either."

"Heh, not at all."

"What did he say then?"

"Well, I won't repeat that. It wasn't the sort of language you'd use in polite conversation." He paused. "Y'know, I overheard one of the bystanders say that that pompous windbag was a prince. They said he was a suitor come to see the princess. Heh, I hope the princess has enough sense to reject that one. Imagine _him_ as the future Sultan! We'd all be doomed!"

Jasmine forced herself to laugh along with the boy. So Prince Achmed had threatened to whip helpless children and kicked this boy down in the mud! She'd been right about him after all. In fact, she may have _under_estimated his nastiness. By all accounts, Prince Achmed more than deserved everything she and Rajah had put him through.

"Was it the truth you told the children? That it doesn't hurt?" she had to ask.

"Eh, close enough," the boy replied.

The rest of the day was spent wandering more or less aimlessly. Jasmine didn't even notice she was hungry until Abu disappeared and came back with a few coins, which the boy used to buy bread. They took this with them back to the boy's home, where the three of them ate it and watched the sun set. Jasmine had to admit, it was spectacular. The fading light reflected off the gold of the palace walls, turning them pink and red. But her attention was focused inward rather than out.

She had learned so much in these two days outside the palace walls. She had learned about the city—from the broad main streets to the twisting alleys. She had learned much more about life in it, from rich to poor. She had seen poverty firsthand, and it wasn't pretty.

Most of all, she had learned that this boy that she'd fallen in with was an uncommon person. Despite his obvious poverty, he maintained a positive and sunny disposition. He seemed to bear no hard feelings towards the guards that chased him or the people that had named him a thief. Poor as he was, he gave what little he could to those who were even less fortunate and stood by those who needed help. Jasmine had never met anyone like him. Granted, she hadn't met very many people while locked up in the palace, but she still suspected that people like this boy were rare.

However, there was one thing about him that she had not yet learned, but wanted to. She turned her face from the gorgeous sunset to look at him. She saw the fading gold light reflected in his eyes.

"It is really ridiculous that I've spent the last two days with you, but I don't even know your name."

He blinked in surprise, the realization crossing his face, and then laughed. "I don't know your name either! Tell you mine if you tell me yours," he grinned.

She smiled and took a breath to reply, but hesitated for just an instant before answering. "My name is Yasmin." She wasn't quite ready to tell her new friend who she really was yet. Besides, Yasmin was close enough to her real name.

The boy's eyes widened. "Wow. That really suits you."

She raised one eyebrow. "You think so?"

"Yeah. You couldn't find a more perfect name if you tried."

Jasmine blushed. "And what about you?"

"I'm Aladdin."


	3. Hole Card

All servants hate being the bearers of bad news. Jafar knew this better than most, since his own temper was usually the reason for it. He also knew that the way the pageboy's hands were shaking meant that whatever he had to say was not at all favorable. Jafar almost sighed. And things had been going so well.

Even the Sultan, who could be remarkably obtuse, had picked up on the page's nervousness. "Well boy, what's wrong? I thought I sent you for my daughter."

The page gulped, then took a deep breath and spat it out. "Sire, I cannot find the princess. She is not anywhere in the palace."

Jafar fixed his piercing gaze on the trembling lad, which only served to make the boy more nervous. "You are certain of this?"

"My lord, I looked all over the palace for her. Everyone I spoke to told me they had not seen her since the day Prince Achmed visited."

Jafar raised his eyebrows at Iago perched on his shoulder, who surreptitiously shrugged in return. This was unexpected. He had thought nothing of the princess's absence yesterday. He had assumed that she was sulking in her room.

Jafar turned to the Sultan, who was looking at him, waiting for his suggestion. "Sire, I think a search party should be organized within the palace grounds. It is probable that the princess is trying to avoid seeing another suitor."

"_Awwwck_, search party, _awwwck_!" Iago squawked, edging away from the Sultan.

A little of the worry seemed to fade from the Sultan's face. "You're right, of course, Jafar. I'll leave you in charge of that. While you attend to that, I must find my daughter another suitor."

Jafar fumed. The last thing he wanted to be doing right now was searching the palace for a spoiled, stubborn teenage girl. But orders were orders, and he had to obey—for now.

However, the search for the princess did not go as Jafar had expected. Hour after hour passed with no sign of the girl, though Jafar had the entire staff searching for her. He even used a spell to detect the girl's whereabouts inside the palace, but that also came up empty. Even Iago, with his knowledge of the secret passages, could not locate her.

When Iago returned empty-handed to the pacing Jafar, the sorcerer shut his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose in frustration. "I'm afraid that I'm forced to admit that the princess is no longer in the palace."

"But she's always in the palace! If she's not here, then where the heck is she?"

Iago was right; this was completely unprecedented. As far as Jafar knew, the princess had never so much as set foot outside the palace grounds. If she wasn't in the palace, where could she be? He organized the servants that were responsible for taking care of the princess and interviewed them—an unpleasant business for both parties, but infinitely more so for the staff, who were nearly traumatized by Jafar's relentless questioning.

By mid-afternoon, Jafar had gathered all the information he could. It would appear that the pageboy had been correct. The princess was no longer in the palace, and no one had seen her since the day of Prince Achmed's disastrous visit. The maid had been unable to pass the door of the princess's chambers yesterday because that cursed tiger was standing guard outside, allowing no one to enter. She had instead left the meals just outside. Some of the food had been taken when she returned, so she had assumed that the princess had eaten, but Jafar reasoned that the tiger could also have taken it. This morning when the Sultan had summoned his daughter, one of the animal handlers had to be called to get the tiger away from the door before the page could enter. Upon entering, he had found the room deserted. Those were the facts of the case.

Jafar was none too pleased. "I have wasted nearly the entire day looking for that brat of a princess when I wanted to spend it in looking for the Diamond in the Rough. Now I am still no closer to finding either of them! The princess could have been gone as early as two nights ago. But what could have happened to her?"

"Maybe Prince Achmed wanted a little revenge on the princess for ruining his underwear, not to mention his pride," Iago grinned.

Jafar had to admit that Iago had a point. The only explanation that either of them could see was that Prince Achmed, angry from her slights, had kidnapped the princess. It wasn't a perfect solution, but he was really the only suspect they had. He would suggest to the Sultan that the guards be sent out to find him and bring him back before he reached his own kingdom.

As he made his report to the Sultan, Jafar could see the worry and fear return to the old man full force. There was nothing the Sultan wouldn't do to get his daughter back. And Jafar fully intended to exploit this.

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><p><strong>AN: Sorry this chapter is so short. There will be a significantly longer one coming on Thursday, so tune in then for the next exciting installment!**


	4. One Pair

**A/N: This chapter started out as a relatively positive one. I planned that it was going to get a little more serious later on, but little did I know just how serious. So there I was, humming a little tune as I wrote, unsuspecting and unawares, when the chapter decided to take a sharp right turn into a very dark place and then go up and down a few emotional hills for way longer than I expected it to. The tone changed so fast it almost gave me whiplash. I don't know how this happened or how control of this story got away from me. So I'd like to apologize beforehand for the tone, which is all over the place, but which I can't really seem to bring myself to fix. Sorry! :/**

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><p>Today was Jasmine's birthday.<p>

Today she felt like celebrating, though not because she had lived another year. This day was special because it marked her freedom. She had beaten the law. She had reached her sixteenth birthday and was still unmarried to any prince in any kingdom on earth. This, Jasmine felt, was more cause for celebration than any she had yet had in her life.

Though she may have felt like celebrating, she could only do so internally. She did not dare to tell Aladdin that today was her birthday, for fear that he would remember that today was also the princess's birthday and from there put two and two together. She found that she really did not want him to know that she was really a princess. If he knew, he would treat her different—like royalty. It would change their relationship from this easy friendship they had known for the past few days. Jasmine had never had a friend like him. She didn't want this to change.

Well, really, if she were being honest with herself, she actually _did_ want their relationship to change, just in a different way. She wanted more than just friendship from Aladdin. In fact, she suspected that this had been the case ever since he'd kissed her. In the past few days she had spent entirely in his company, he had showed her a whole new world. And though it may not have been filled with the splendor of palace life, it was the world that most people lived in. Jasmine had found that she loved speaking to these people, learning about their trials and triumphs. Most of the people she had met, though many of them were down on their luck, were wonderful to speak to and interact with. Even the few that were unpleasant were interesting in their way. She realized that this, more than anything else, was what she had missed while locked in the palace.

This especially applied to Aladdin, whom Jasmine had come to regard as one of a kind. He may be poor and a thief, but he had his own code of honor. He did what he could to help those less fortunate than him, which sometimes meant foregoing his own chance to eat in order to give someone else that chance. He didn't make a big deal of it though. He did what he felt was right and didn't call attention to his actions.

She knew that he was doing the same thing for her. She was aware that she was more of a burden to him than a help, but he never made her feel that way. She knew that he was trying to help her escape from the life she had left behind, even if he didn't know all the details. He had given her food, shelter, friendship—he had even managed to find some more sensible clothes for her to wear. He had gone well out of his way to help her, and had asked for nothing in return. Yes, he was a risk-taker, and it often seemed as if he didn't take danger seriously enough, but Jasmine was coming to understand that this was out of necessity. He had to take risks just to survive, and if he couldn't have a sense of humor about it, then he would have no other way to lift his spirits.

Though she was attracted to his selflessness and upbeat personality, it would be a lie to say that she didn't think he was good-looking as well, even with his unkempt, shaggy hair. His body was strong from the demands of evading the guards, and his open vest did nothing to conceal this. His smile was perfect, and his large, brown eyes were so expressive and open. Jasmine often found herself observing him discreetly, watching the way he moved so gracefully or the play of expressions across his face.

Aladdin had not kissed her since that first night, and Jasmine was a little confused as to why. She was pretty sure that he liked her. The kiss, of course, was a dead giveaway, but she had also caught him watching her with soft eyes when he thought she wasn't looking. And then there was that moment yesterday when they were fleeing the guards (yet again). Aladdin had pulled the two of them into a very narrow, conveniently dark gap between two buildings, where they hid until the guards had passed. Chest to chest, his arm around her waist, Jasmine watched the silhouette of Aladdin's face turned toward the street, looking out for the guards. She could feel the tenseness in the muscles of his shoulders where her hands rested and the heat of his body pressed to hers. His heat seemed to go right into her—she felt an intensity she had never felt before.

When he had judged the danger was past, he relaxed a bit and turned his face to hers to find her looking at him with an expression she was sure was far from innocent. The tenseness in his body returned, the arm around her waist pressed her closer, and she thought she saw his eyes darken, though it was hard to tell the expression on his face in the dim light. They remained like this for a moment that stretched on. Jasmine was sure that he would kiss her, and she welcomed it. But then he tore his gaze from hers and slid his arm back to take her hand instead, leading her back to the street and in the opposite direction the guards had taken.

It was a mystery, to say the least. And since it was her birthday and Jasmine was feeling a little high on the power of thwarting the unfair laws that had bound her, she decided that it would be the perfect time to unravel this little puzzle. With any luck, she would get what she really wanted for her birthday.

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><p>Aladdin was headed home from the marketplace at the end of the day with a loaf of bread and Abu perched on his shoulder. He was hurrying a bit. He told himself it was because he didn't like to leave Yasmin alone, but his own desire to be near her was probably closer to the truth. It was just too bad he wasn't allowing himself to act on any of his desires at the moment.<p>

He had to give the girl credit: she was holding up better than he'd thought she would. In the last four days they'd run from the authorities more than once, lived on whatever food he could find or steal, and slept with nothing more than a couple of blankets for protection against the hard floor and the chilly night air. Despite all that, she seemed to be none the worse for wear. She didn't complain, and she didn't seem unhappy. In fact, today she had seemed in better spirits than she ever had before in his short acquaintance with her.

Through it all, she maintained a kind and gentle manner with those who needed his help. Aladdin actually wasn't sure what was doing those two urchin children more good—his handouts or her kindness towards them.

Aladdin was amazed at Yasmin's strong and adventurous spirit as well as her kind nature, which only had the effect of strengthening his attraction to her. His growing desire to be with her was making it all the harder for him to keep his distance, as he had promised himself he would.

He had not forgotten why it was a bad idea to let himself get carried away. Someone was surely looking for her, and Aladdin would probably find himself caught in the crossfire when they found her. This, however, was now the least of his concerns. He realized that he would sacrifice his freedom and more if it could help Yasmin in any way. But it was still more likely that she would eventually reach her limit of sleeping on the floor and eating scraps day after day. Then she would leave him forever.

And if she didn't? What if she didn't tire of all this? Aladdin knew that if this were so he would still have to be careful. He knew that Yasmin was meant for finer things. If he'd had the means, he would have provided for her every need. But as it was, he could barely get enough food for her. He couldn't possibly ask her to stay with a lowly street rat like him, at the bottom of the social ladder. It wasn't fair or right.

Aladdin sighed, resigning himself to holding his feelings inside. Perhaps they would fade after a time if he ignored them. This is what he told himself, though he sincerely doubted it.

Aladdin's thoughts were interrupted when his monkey friend jumped off his shoulder to the ground. "Hey, Abu, where are you going? We're almost home."

Abu turned around and glared at him. "What's wrong, Abu?"

The monkey then fluttered his eyelashes and twirled his tail in what could only be an unflattering impression of Yasmin.

"Don't tell me you're jealous again. I thought you were over it!" Aladdin said, exasperated.

This, however, appeared to be the wrong thing to say, as Abu then began chattering and screeching angrily at him before streaking away across the street.

"Abu, come back! Let's talk about this!" Aladdin called, but the street was silent. Aladdin huffed out a breath. Fine. If that's the way he wanted to act, then he could just go sulk for a while. He'd come back when he had cooled down—he always did when he had tantrums. Aladdin continued up the ladder and across the rooftops to his home, where Yasmin was waiting for him.

Aladdin's first sight upon arriving at the top of the stairs took his breath away. The curtain was open, and Yasmin was sitting on the broken wall, brushing her hair and looking out at the city. Her beautiful form was framed in the aperture and silhouetted by the myriad colors of the sunset. The golden light reflected off her shining hair, playing along the strands as she brushed it in long, sure strokes.

Aladdin was unable to move for a minute, just watching this vision of beauty. Finally he acted on his instincts and stepped forward. He moved toward her almost soundlessly, setting the bread down on a blanket as he continued up the steps to her. "Hey," he said softly, hoping she wouldn't be startled.

Yasmin turned quickly, but she was smiling. "Hey," she said, looking into his eyes.

Aladdin held out his hand for the brush. "May I?"

Yasmin smiled wider and simply placed the brush in his hand before turning back to the sunset. Aladdin settled himself on the low stone wall behind her, brush at the ready. He hesitated briefly, then let his other hand come up to sink into her soft, black tresses.

Aladdin had never brushed a woman's hair before, so he hoped he was doing it right. For the first few minutes, he just concentrated on being gentle and not accidentally pulling on her scalp. The slide of her hair over his hands electrified his nerves, and he felt a tingling sensation in his fingertips. Some corner of his mind tried to remind him that he was supposed to be keeping his distance, but the sensations he was now experiencing smothered this weakly protesting voice.

He soon began to notice how relaxed Yasmin was. Her eyes were closed and there was a soft smile on her lips. "How am I doing?" Aladdin asked, grinning.

"Mmmmm, that feels fantastic," she murmured, and Aladdin chuckled. She opened her eyes and turned her head to see him, a question written on her face. "Aladdin, why are you a thief?"

Aladdin nearly dropped the brush at her question. He had not been expecting that. "W-what?" he stammered.

Yasmin looked down, a little embarrassed. "I was just wondering…You seem like such a nice boy, and you're smart and skillful. I'm surprised that someone with your talents would resort to thievery."

Aladdin let out a surprised laugh. "Well, it's not always one's stellar personal qualities that matter to people. Sometimes they just don't like you 'cause you're poor."

It was Yasmin's turn to be surprised. "Really? I mean, what are you talking about?"

Aladdin set down the brush and leaned back against the broken wall. He looked down at his hands, which seemed to have gone numb, and tried to explain.

"Yasmin, most people have this thing about poor people. They don't like us very much. I'm not sure why—maybe they think we're dirty, or lazy, or criminals or something. Whatever it is, they don't want to even be around us, let alone hire us."

Yasmin's spine was straight as an arrow shaft, her arms crossed, indignation rolling off her. "That's ridiculous! How can they even think that? How can they judge people before they know them?"

Aladdin shrugged. "Well, they know me. I have a reputation as one of the most annoying petty thieves in Agrabah. No way is anyone going to want a criminal hanging around, and forget about a job. I learned that the hard way, I guess."

Yasmin paused, curiosity overcoming her indignation. "What do you mean?"

Aladdin sighed and ran a hand through his hair, then looked at her. "It's a bit of a long story."

Yasmin scooted closer to him. "I'm listening."

Aladdin paused to gather his thoughts. He hadn't really planned on telling her all this. A lot of these memories were too painful for even him to put a positive spin on things. In truth, he usually tried not to dwell on the past, or even think about it at all, for that matter. But he didn't think it was fair to Yasmin to conceal it from her just because he didn't want to think about it. It might help her to understand—especially about how wrong it was for her to stay with him. He shrank from the thought that this realization would cause her to leave, but he had to tell her. He owed it to her to tell her everything so that she wouldn't make the same mistakes he had without knowing it. He took a deep breath and began.

"I've always been poor. I don't remember ever living in a house; I very much doubt I ever have. I barely even remember my mother. I don't think I was even four years old yet when she died. What I remember most about her was her unwavering belief that my father would come back to us one day. She hoped for that until her last breath. But her faith in him was in vain."

Aladdin realized that his voice had suddenly become bitter. He cleared his throat and moved on, careful not to mention his father again. His father, after all, was not important in this story.

"After my mother died, I was alone. There was one woman who used to give me food, but if her husband found me hanging around the house, he got angry and chased me away. Heh, I suppose it could be considered early training for ducking the guards. Most of the time I had to get by from begging or picking through trash for scraps.

"I started stealing when I was about seven. The first time, I was just really hungry and couldn't find anything else, so I tried to take bread from a stall in the market. I knew it was wrong, but I did it anyway. The vendor saw me, of course, and he and the guards chased me for a good long while. I got away, but only barely, and at the cost of my stolen bread. I'd lost it somewhere along the way. I decided that the experience was not worth repeating. Besides being wrong, it was dangerous and fruitless.

"So the next day, I tried to return to the market to beg for coins or scraps or whatever I could get, but a guard saw me and they chased me away again. I was confused, because I hadn't even done anything wrong this time. It was the same story for at least a week. Any time a guard saw me, they tried to catch me. They were so relentless that I could barely find anything to eat.

"Finally, I was so hungry that I would've done just about anything for food. I decided to try stealing again, even though I didn't want to, because I felt like I had no other choice. I was just really desperate—I don't think I was thinking clearly, which is more than likely considering how hungry I was. This time, though, I was successful, and no one even saw me, which was good, because I don't think I could've outrun the guards that time.

"What I really remember though, is how I felt after. I felt terrible, like I was lower than dirt because I stole something. Maybe it was just because I was so lightheaded, but I really felt like crying. I almost couldn't eat the bread I'd taken because I knew I didn't deserve it.

"That's when I realized why the guards were chasing me. This feeling of shame—it was because I had done something disgusting and awful, and the guards knew that. That's why they hated me. I knew then that they would always chase me because of this terrible thing I'd done—I'd never be free of it. I wished I'd never even _thought_ to steal anything, but it was too late. I was a thief."

Aladdin paused there, mired in his memories of that day. He remembered thinking that his mother would be so disappointed in him, that he'd let her down…

"That's not true!"

Aladdin looked up sharply, startled by the harshness in Yasmin's voice. He was shocked to see that she was actually near tears.

"You were just a little boy!" she continued angrily, eyes shining. "You were hungry—you didn't know any better! What were you supposed to do, starve?" Suddenly she threw herself on top of him, embracing him tightly, and Aladdin's arms instinctively came up around her back to steady the both of them on the narrow ledge. "You should have had someone to take care of you, but you were alone. You had no choice; you only did what you had to."

Aladdin rubbed her back, recognizing her need to rationalize his story. He'd felt that need, too, for many years. "That's what I used to tell myself, too. And maybe there really was nothing else I could have done. But if I'd known then what I do now, I think I would have done whatever it took to find another way."

"And what's that?" Yasmin sniffed against his shoulder.

"What I know now? What I know is that some reputations may be hard to earn and easy to lose, but those are only the good ones. The bad ones are exactly the opposite. I know now that if you commit a crime, even once, then that's what you'll be known for the rest of your life." Maybe for good reason, he thought to himself. He felt Yasmin's arms tighten around his waist.

They sat holding each other for many minutes, each in their own thoughts, watching the sky change color. The sight was beautiful, the atmosphere now seemed almost depressing.

Finally Aladdin, hoping to take Yasmin's mind off the distressing story he'd just told her, said, "What a sunset. There really is no better view in the whole city—believe me, I've looked."

Yasmin sighed, her head resting on Aladdin's shoulder, her face just below his. "Yes. This twilight reminds me of another, actually."

Aladdin looked again and laughed softly. "You're right. It's almost just like the night you first came here."

"I know. You kissed me that night."

Aladdin froze, warning lights going off in his head. This was not what he'd intended. He sensed the conversation had broken free of his control and was now spiraling down into dangerous territory. He tried desperately to think of a response that would allow him to stop this descent into madness, but his mind was blank.

Yasmin, on the other hand, knew exactly what she was doing. She reached up and placed a hand on his cheek, turning his face so that he was looking down at her. Her eyes were fixed on his. "Why don't you do it again?" she whispered.

Something exploded in Aladdin's chest and he couldn't seem to catch his breath. She was so close! _So close!_ He felt his resistance crumbling as his heart rate skyrocketed. He couldn't quite remember why he had felt the need to resist in the first place.

Then Yasmin's eyes flickered down to his mouth and her lips parted slightly, and Aladdin was lost.

As his lips met hers, his eyes slid shut and he pulled her closer to him between his legs, which were positioned one on each side of the low wall. She moved forward eagerly and hooked her legs over both of his, bringing her even closer. Aladdin put one arm around her shoulders and the other hand on the bare skin of her lower back in a tight embrace that brought their bodies flush against one another. Aladdin felt her gasp into their kiss. He took the opportunity to deepen the kiss, catching her tongue with his, savoring the wonderful noises she was making in her throat.

He could feel her hands exploring his torso, running along his sides and back beneath his vest, leaving trails of fire just under his skin. Her fingers came around to trace the muscles of his stomach, then her hands wandered back to wrap around him. She hugged him tightly, bringing them closer, so that her bare stomach brushed against his. He heard Yasmin's soft moan and he was very tempted to do the same.

However, the sensation had jolted him back to awareness, and the seriousness of the situation returned to his consciousness. With great reluctance, he broke the kiss and grasped her shoulders to gently push her back so he could see her face.

When he saw the color rising on her cheeks and the enlarged, dark pupils of her eyes, he almost gave in to temptation once again. Instead he took a few deep breaths to steady himself.

"Yasmin," he said once they had both calmed down, "I don't think you got what I was trying to tell you with that story."

Her eyes were confused and concerned now. "And what's that?"

Aladdin let go of Yasmin's shoulders and let his head fall back against the wall. He looked up at the crumbling ceiling as he answered. "Bad reputations are hard to shake, Yasmin, and they can rub off on other people, too. If you're seen with me too much, you'll find out exactly what that means. People will associate you with me. They'll think you're a thief as well, or something just as bad. You deserve better than that."

"So do you."

Aladdin looked back at her, eyebrow raised, questioning. Yasmin continued. "Aladdin, the people who know you—who _really_ know you—don't think of you as a criminal. I've seen it when they talk to you. They know who you really are. They know that you're clever," and here she leaned forward and kissed him on the cheek, "and talented," she kissed him on the other cheek, "and selfless," she said, and kissed him on the forehead.

Aladdin could feel his face burning. While he knew it was true what she said about certain people seeing him this way, he wasn't actually sure if this was the 'real him.' He acted happy-go-lucky not just because he enjoyed being with people, but also because he just really didn't want to dwell on his numerous mistakes all the time. He acted selfless not only because he truly felt for the people he was helping, but also because he wanted to make himself feel better about stealing all the time. If he gave some of what he stole to people who really needed it, he didn't feel as bad about the act itself because he had turned it into a way to help other people. It had partially become a way to deal with the guilt he still felt deep down about his life of crime. He really did want to do something good with his life, but this was the only way he could find to do that, sad and morally flawed as it was.

Maybe this was why he had no friends other than a kleptomaniac monkey. He had thought he feared to get too close to people because they would be found guilty of his crimes by mere association with him. Maybe it was really because he didn't want to face seeing himself as the failure he was in the eyes of another person he cared about.

In any case, Yasmin still wasn't getting it. In the end, it didn't really matter who he _really_ was: what mattered was his criminal record. If she was associated with him, she would be painted with the same brush of ignominy.

"What you say may be true, but it doesn't change anything. Yasmin, if you stay with me, I'll have doomed you to a life of poverty and crime."

What she did next amazed him. Yasmin smiled softly, but her eyes were serious as she answered. "If it means I can stay with you, I think I can live with that."

She leaned forward to kiss him again, and this time, Aladdin didn't resist.

The two remained locked in their embrace, oblivious to all else around them. They did not heed the last light of the sun as it slipped below the horizon, highlighting the black storm clouds brewing in the distance.


	5. Flush

Jafar could almost feel the energy of the storm building above him. He had just finished putting the last touches on the scrying glass, which was fortunate, since the storm would discharge its power at any minute.

"Hey Jafar, you finished yet?"

"Yes, my feathered friend."

"Well it's about time. I think that storm's about to break loose."

Jafar bristled. "I would have been done with the preparations much earlier if it hadn't been for the search for that blasted girl taking up all my time," he growled.

The search had not been successful, despite Jafar diverting a large portion of the sultanate's resources to the task. The Sultan's fastest riders had caught up to Prince Achmed in record time, possibly because the prince had been in no particular hurry to reach home and had stopped at a brothel in a neighboring city. Though the guards searched the premises for the missing princess, she was nowhere to be found, so they forcibly escorted Prince Achmed back to Agrabah. Jafar had him locked in a comfortable guest room while he dispatched messengers and soldiers to search the roads and towns for the princess. He also put Razoul and his goons on the hunt inside the city itself, but he doubted she was still here. Whoever had taken her would want to get her out of the city as quickly as possible to a safe location, probably to demand ransom.

Prince Achmed was protesting his innocence, of course, and Jafar was inclined to believe him. He would perhaps get revenge by kidnapping the princess, but it would probably result in war for their two nations. Prince Achmed may be vain, arrogant, and totally lacking in empathy, but he was no fool. He may not care about the lives that would be lost, but he knew that wars were expensive and made trading difficult, and he was unlikely to want to lighten his purse so much for the sake of a little revenge.

Jafar cared little for all of this now, though. The princess could rot in whatever hellhole she had been dragged to. After tonight, he would know who and where the Diamond was. Then the hard part of this quest would be over, and it would be a short time until he had all that he desired.

Finally, Jafar heard the storm above reach a climax. Lightning ripped from the skies and struck the metal rod he had erected, funneling pure electricity to the machine he had created. Jafar watched as the Sultan's blue diamond glowed with power.

"Jafar, what's happening?!" squawked Iago, a note of fear creeping into his harsh voice.

Jafar ignored the bird. He felt exultant—the contraption was working.

"Show me the Diamond in the Rough!" Jafar cried, and an image began to form.

At first Jafar thought that the glass was only showing him a distant view of the palace, but then he realized that he was actually seeing the inside of a room with one wall almost completely missing. Framed there in the gap was the silhouette of a man. He appeared to be looking out at the storm, his back to the room. Then he turned back to look at something that was just outside of Jafar's line of vision.

Just as Jafar was getting frustrated that he could not see the man's face, a bolt of flickering lightning illuminated him. Jafar could clearly see the ragged pants and threadbare vest. He also got a good look at his face, and realized with a start that the Diamond was just a boy. All the better, though. The young and naïve are easier to manipulate.

"What the heck was that?" Iago said, coming to rest on his shoulder. "I could barely see anything. Was that kid the Diamond?"

"_Yes,_ Iago, now silence! I need to concentrate."

Jafar mentally calculated the distance and direction of his point of view from the image of the palace in the glass. He pulled out a map of the city. That the Diamond was so close was a stroke of luck that he had not dared wish for. He had prepared himself to travel far to get this one. Now he could see that in the area of the city he had estimated the boy to be, there was only one building high enough to view the palace from the specific angle he had seen in the glass.

Jafar cackled. "Here is the Diamond's location," he said as he pointed out the spot to Iago.

"So close? Geez, this is gonna be easier than we thought."

"Yes, it is a stroke of great good fortune. Now I need only send for Razoul and put him and his hounds on the scent. Soon the Diamond will be mine, and after that, the lamp."

* * *

><p>Aladdin was awakened by Abu jumping on his face.<p>

He sat up so quickly that he nearly overbalanced and fell on top of Yasmin. He had somehow managed to avoid waking her up with his sudden start, and now that he was fully awake, he was careful not to do so.

"Abu!" he hissed, squinting through the darkness. A sudden flash of light illuminated the room, and Aladdin saw him huddled in the corner. The thunder that followed set the monkey shivering. Abu didn't like thunderstorms.

Aladdin grabbed Abu's blanket and brought it over to him. Abu snatched it and burrowed underneath of it. "So I guess you're done throwing a fit, huh?" Aladdin said. Abu didn't answer. It would appear that the storm had cut short his sulking and he had come back to his home for a place of relative safety from the elements. Aladdin laughed softly and walked to the demolished wall to look out at the storm.

Abu may not have liked storms, but Aladdin was fascinated by them. They didn't often happen in Agrabah, so each time they did, it was awesome to behold. He watched as lightning split the sky, thunder booming. He wondered what it would feel like to be struck by such a powerful bolt. Probably not very pleasant, he supposed, though he had never spoken to someone who had experienced it.

The storm was beautiful, Aladdin decided, but not in the conventional way. It was dark and dangerous, but its power was thrilling. The way the lightning forked, never the same way twice, and cast the city in stark light and shadow added mystery. He could sit there and watch it all night.

However, he wondered if he shouldn't shut the curtain to keep some of the wind and rain out. Perhaps Yasmin was cold. He looked over at her sleeping form and a flash of light illuminated her face. She was still asleep, though Aladdin didn't know how that was possible with this thunder.

Aladdin smiled. He could barely believe that Yasmin was still here with him after all he had told her about his past. After moving from the window to curl up together on their blanket, Aladdin had tried again to tell her what she was giving up by choosing to stay with him. She had told him very seriously, and in no uncertain terms, that she knew what she was doing. Aladdin still doubted this. Hearing about a life of poverty was one thing—actually living it was another. But she was at least informed. She had a pretty good idea of what was in store and she could live with that, so Aladdin thought that he could live with it too. She was a force of nature in and of herself.

Not unlike this storm, which Aladdin continued to watch, spellbound by its strange, majestic gravitas. He wasn't sure how long he had been standing there musing, but he was finally aroused from his reverie by warm arms around his waist and a kiss on his shoulder.

"The bed is cold without you."

Aladdin turned his head to look at her, smiling. "I'm sorry. Shall I close the curtain?"

Yasmin shook her head. "I like watching the storm, too."

She settled herself next to Aladdin and draped the blanket she had brought around their shoulders. Then she frowned. "It's still cold."

Aladdin chuckled. "Then I guess we'll just have to make a little heat."

He bent his head to hers and kissed her, long and slow. She turned her body towards his and brought her arms up around his neck, enveloping both of them in the blanket. His hands came to rest at her waist, pulling her closer, stroking her skin with his fingers. Then he broke the kiss to trail his lips from her mouth along the edge of her jaw, placing a kiss just under her ear. From there he moved slowly down her neck, just letting his lips brush along the pulsing vein, teasing her—right up until he opened his lips and sucked on it. He could barely hear the delicious noises she was making over the noise of the storm, but he could feel the vibrations in her throat, which he found was just as good.

A particularly loud blast of thunder caused them both to jump and break apart, though they still remained with their arms around one another. They laughed at themselves.

As Yasmin leaned forward to kiss Aladdin again, there was a flash of lightning that illuminated a movement from outside. "Wait," Aladdin said. "I think I saw something."

Aladdin ducked out of the blanket and moved to the edge of the wall, trying to spot what he had seen again. Another flash of lightning did the trick. To his great surprise, he saw Razoul and four of his guards moving across the rooftops towards them. They could only be up here for one purpose.

How had Razoul found where he lived? Aladdin had been covering his tracks successfully for years. Also, why had he chosen to come after him during a thunderstorm? Wasn't there any other dark night that wouldn't result in them getting soaked?

At the moment, though, these questions were only a distraction. Aladdin turned and grabbed Yasmin's hand. "Come on. The guards are here. We have to go before they catch us." He just caught the surprised and fearful expression on Yasmin's face as he strode over to Abu.

"Abu! C'mon, we gotta go." The monkey just cowered under his blanket. "I know you don't want to go outside, but if you stay here, Razoul will catch you. I don't think you want that." Abu shuddered, then bounded up to Aladdin's shoulder.

The three of them raced down the stairs as quickly as safety would allow and emerged on the rooftops amid the raging storm. They were almost instantly soaked. Aladdin had no time to appreciate this fact, however, as he was busy looking for any cover he could find. He leaped gaps between buildings and dodged clotheslines, all the while holding Yasmin's hand to make sure they did not become separated. He soon found a building with a low parapet, behind which he concealed the three of them, crouching there to remain hidden.

Aladdin raised himself up again, looking over the low wall to see if they were being pursued. He watched as Razoul rounded the corner just twenty feet away from them and led his men into the tower that he, Yasmin, and Abu had recently vacated. Now was their chance to make a clean getaway, before the guards gained the top of the tower and the view it afforded them.

Aladdin, still holding Yasmin's hand, jumped up and fled across the rooftops. As soon as he was able, he descended to the street and led the way through a labyrinth of alleys and side streets, barely pausing to draw breath.

He finally stopped when he had judged that he'd put enough distance between them and any possible pursuit. He pulled Yasmin under a small awning for a respite from the storm. All three of them were soaked through and freezing cold. Aladdin felt like his hand was frozen onto Yasmin's, for all the feeling he had left in his extremities. Both Yasmin and Abu drew close to Aladdin, shivering, but Aladdin was a poor comfort for them, as he was just as cold. He had to get them to shelter somehow, or risk them becoming ill.

He only had one idea, and he prayed that Yasmin wouldn't be repulsed by it. He pulled all of them back out into the rain and made his way to a stable that he knew was nearby. Inside it was warmer and dry, which was what mattered right now. Sure, they would be sleeping with donkeys and camels, but it was preferable to being outside. Abu immediately cast aside his wet vest and burrowed underneath a horse blanket.

Aladdin realized that Abu was right: taking off their clothes would be the fastest way to get warm, but he wondered how Yasmin would take it. He took one look at her and decided it was at least worth suggesting. She was still shaking and he could see that her lips were blue even in the near-darkness. He grabbed a few blankets and led the way up to the loft, where there was a pile of hay. He spread one of the blankets on top of it.

"Yasmin?" Aladdin started, tentatively. The girl looked up at him, eyes half lidded with fatigue and still shivering. "Um, it would be better if—I mean to say, we would warm up faster if we—well, if we took our wet clothes off." Yasmin's eyes widened and she hesitated, but the discomfort of the cold must have won out in the end because she finally nodded.

The loft was so dark that Aladdin could barely see, but he still turned around to give Yasmin some privacy. He pulled off his vest and hung it on a rafter, then worked on his pants, which were much harder as they were clinging to his legs and his limbs were stiff from the cold. Even with all his natural grace, he nearly fell over twice. He left his underpants on out of respect for Yasmin.

He stood waiting, back turned to her. What would happen now? Most men might welcome the chance to be skin to skin with this beautiful woman, but to Aladdin, the situation felt awkward. They'd been sharing a bed for several nights now, but this was different. He didn't want Yasmin to have this kind of pressure on her, to be forced to go farther than she was comfortable with. He didn't know what to do, where to go from here. It was necessary for them to be close to share body heat, but at the same time he didn't want to push her.

He was working himself into a real stew when he felt her cold hand on his shoulder. He turned around to see her silhouette. "Can we get under the blankets now?" she asked, her voice small and shaking. Aladdin hoped it was due to the cold.

He took her hand and led her to the hay, arranging the blankets above them before settling down at her back. He wrapped his arms around her as he did every night, in the process noticing that she was also wearing underpants, but nothing else. The sensation of the bare skin of her back against his chest was strange to him. More than that though, he could feel that she was freezing. He wasn't much better off, but they would be all right soon. Yasmin sighed, as though relieved to be warm again. Aladdin immediately felt more at ease about the necessity of taking off their clothes.

As Aladdin drifted off, he had the brief, not entirely lucid realization that he had become accustomed to falling asleep to the feel of Yasmin's heartbeat.


	6. Four of a Kind

Jasmine was awakened by a hand covering her mouth.

She nearly panicked until she heard Aladdin's voice whispering in her ear. "It's okay, it's just me! We have to be quiet; there's someone else in here. Go and quick hide behind the haystack, alright?"

Jasmine nodded to show she'd understood, and she felt him release her, pulling his hand from her mouth and his arm from around her waist so he could stand up. She immediately wrapped a blanket around herself and grabbed the others, moving quickly to the other side of the haystack so that she was between it and the wall. She threw the blankets down and lay flat so she couldn't be seen. Aladdin was close behind her with their clothes. He squeezed in next to her in the small space.

She could hear the footsteps of the person below them as he moved about, whistling an off-key tune as he worked. Her mind, however, was less occupied with the imminent danger and more with the fact that Aladdin was lying right next to her and wearing next to nothing—of which the same could be said of her. Aladdin appeared not to notice their state of undress, however. He was on edge, his mouth set in a slight frown as he listened. His arm around her waist was tense. As the man climbed up to the loft, his arm tightened around her, keeping her close to him. Jasmine hardly dared to breathe as the man came within feet of them to get some hay for the animals. Neither of them relaxed until they heard the door bang shut and the whistling fading away.

Jasmine let out the breath she had been holding and ran a slightly shaking hand through her hair. "That was a close call."

"Not as close as it was last night," Aladdin said, already standing to hang their clothes up once again.

"Our clothes aren't dry yet?"

"No," Aladdin answered as he sat back down in the hay. He seemed agitated to Jasmine. Such a terse rejoinder was unlike him, and he had yet to smile when it usually came so easy to him.

Jasmine sat up beside him, holding the blanket around her. "What is it?"

Aladdin's eyes flicked towards her, but didn't meet her eyes. "Hmm?" He was definitely preoccupied.

Jasmine put a hand on his shoulder, which finally got his attention. He turned to look at her for the first time that morning. "What are you thinking about, Aladdin?"

He sighed and looked away again, absently picking up a bit of hay and tearing it apart with his fingers. "Doesn't what happened last night seem a bit odd to you?"

Jasmine frowned, not liking where this was going. "How so?"

"Well, first of all, I've lived in that tower for years without the guards catching on. How did they find me all of a sudden? I've always been careful to cover my tracks, but maybe I slipped up…"

Jasmine felt bad. "You shouldn't blame yourself for this. It could as easily have been my fault." In fact, she was sure that she was the reason for their discovery, though maybe not in the way Aladdin thought. She was sure that her father had all the guards on the lookout for her. It would seem that someone had spotted her and the guards had been deployed to bring her back. The case of a missing princess is far more serious than that of a street thief, so that must have given them the extra incentive to hunt the two of them down once and for all. Jasmine felt a pang at the realization that helping her had likely cost this boy his home. She continued, "In fact, it probably was. I'm sorry." She looked down, ashamed.

She saw Aladdin's hand cover hers, intertwining their fingers. His other hand gently lifted her chin so she would look at him. "Don't be sorry. It wasn't your fault, really. It had to happen sooner or later." He finally gave her a soft smile.

Jasmine sensed there was something more he had to say. "Then what's worrying you?" she asked.

Aladdin dropped his hand and his smile faded. "Doesn't it seem strange that they would choose to come after me in the middle of a thunderstorm? It was just as wet and dangerous for them as it was for us."

Jasmine thought about it. It did indeed raise a few questions. "Maybe they were hoping to use the noise of the storm as cover? And if it's raining you're sure to be at home, not out and about, so they knew you'd be there."

Aladdin smirked. "That's giving them _way_ too much credit. I'm sure that the cover the storm may have provided didn't even occur to them. And if it did, I don't think they would have exposed themselves to so much discomfort just to catch a petty thief."

"What about to catch _both_ of us?"

As soon as the words were out of her mouth, Jasmine wished she could take them back. She could see the question in his eyes, wanting to ask her who her father actually was, why she should garner so much attention from the guards. She held her breath as he held her in his gaze, but to her relief, he didn't ask. He just said, "Maybe."

Jasmine was relieved, but she didn't want to think about why. She knew that it was unfair of her to keep her friend in the dark, especially after this near miss, but she was still afraid. If he knew she was a princess, everything would end. She wasn't quite sure how he would react, but she knew that the feelings that had been growing between them would never come to fruition. Maybe he would try to treat her like royalty, or take her back to the palace, or put himself at a safe distance by leaving her. No, on second thought, she was sure he wouldn't abandon her. He was too good to do such a thing. But he would know that he could never be with her. The law prevented her marrying anyone but a prince. Perhaps…perhaps he would be angry with her for keeping this secret from him. She couldn't say she would blame him.

In any case, she wasn't ready for him to know the truth. She didn't know if she ever would be. A very large part of her wanted never to tell him, to go on living at his side for the rest of her life: a common woman free to make her own choices. Perhaps if she ignored the truth, pretended she wasn't a princess—perhaps that is exactly what would happen.

Aladdin called her back from her thoughts. "Anyway, there's nothing we can do about it now."

Jasmine looked at him. "So what _do_ we do now?"

"Wait for our clothes to dry, I guess."

"And in the meantime? We can't exactly go out dressed like this."

Aladdin raised one eyebrow. "Of course not. But there are other things we can do to kill time."

"Like what?"

Aladdin glanced away, but he seemed to be fighting down a smile. "Well, I really liked kissing you last night."

Jasmine felt a grin tugging at the corners of her own mouth. "Is that so?"

Aladdin looked at her, grinning. "Yeah. You're really good at it."

Jasmine could feel her cheeks heating up as she fought to keep a straight face. "Well, I think perhaps you deserve most of the credit."

Aladdin's grin widened as he moved closer. "Shall we test that theory?"

"Mmmm, what an idea," Jasmine purred as he closed the distance between them.

As their lips met, Jasmine felt a coil of heat begin to tighten in her belly. Kissing Aladdin was definitely the most exciting thing she had ever done. She opened her mouth to allow their tongues to twine together, and recalled how amazing it had felt last night when Aladdin had turned his attentions to her neck. She saw no reason why she shouldn't return the favor. She moved forward, pressing him back so he was lying on the hay. He pulled her down on top of him, not wanting to break the kiss, but she pulled away anyway. She heard him make a noise that sounded almost disappointed, until she lowered her head to kiss the point between his neck and shoulder. He gasped, and she felt his hands tighten on her waist. She kissed up the side of his neck to just below his jaw, feeling his breath hitch with every contact of her lips. Then, feeling bold, she licked the point just below his ear. She heard him gasp again, so the next time, she licked a line all the way up his throat from the dip in his collarbone to his chin. Aladdin groaned.

Suddenly, Jasmine found herself on her back in the hay. Aladdin had flipped them over, reversing their positions so that he was now above her. She gasped in surprise, which was quickly cut off by Aladdin's lips on hers.

She barely had time to wrap her arms around his neck however, before they heard the door of the stable bang open and a tuneless whistle reach their ears. Aladdin groaned softly. "That guy has the worst timing," he whispered, "and I'm not talking about his whistling."

Aladdin began to move away from Jasmine, but her arms around his neck stopped him. He looked at her, confused, but she just gave him a smile that was less than innocent. "There's no reason he should interrupt us," she purred, then moved her head so her lips were almost touching his ear before whispering, "as long as we're quiet."

Aladdin looked shocked for just a second before he answered her seductive little grin with one of his own. "That being the case, I suppose we should occupy our mouths with something other than talking," he replied, and bent to kiss her before her giggles alerted the oblivious stable hand.

* * *

><p>Jafar regarded Razoul and the three guards behind him with cold fury in his eyes. His grip tightened on his staff until his knuckles turned white.<p>

"So," he said quietly, venom dripping from his voice, "let me see if I have heard you correctly. This street rat has been evading you for years, making fools of you and your men. And now that I have told you exactly where he is and how to catch him, you have allowed him to slip through your fingers _yet again_."

Razoul looked chagrined. "My lord, I am most sorry for my failure—"

"Your apologies mean nothing to me!" Jafar shouted, banging his staff upon the floor. "'Sorry' does not make up for your complete incompetence, nor will it save you from the consequences if you should fail me. I want results, captain, not your pathetic excuses."

Razoul bowed his head. "Yes, my lord."

"If you are incapable of the simple task of apprehending a petty thief, I will remove you from your post as captain as you are clearly unworthy of it. Perhaps someone else will have better success."

"Give me another chance, my lord. I will catch that little rat if it's the last thing I do. I swear on my honor."

Jafar sneered. "Your honor must not be a very great thing to have allowed him to evade you for so many years. However, I don't have the resources at the moment to replace you. The search for the princess is of the first priority and most of the guards are engaged in it. So, captain, you have your second chance. Succeed, and I'll consider allowing you to remain an officer of the guard."

"Thank you, my lord. I will not fail you again."

"See that you don't. You are dismissed."

"_Awwwck! _You're dismissed! _Awwwck!_" Iago screeched after the retreating guards. As soon as they were gone, he turned to Jafar. "Well, that could've gone better."

Jafar cast a glance at the parrot. "You think?" He replied, sarcasm evident in his tone.

"D'you think they'll catch him this time? You certainly gave them some motivation to get the job done right."

"Razoul's incompetence notwithstanding, I think it's only a matter of time before the Diamond is caught. There will certainly be greater pressure on him now than ever before. Besides, you remember that Razoul reported that he has a woman now that he's reluctant to leave behind."

"So what?"

"It makes him vulnerable, having to take care of her as well. She will slow him down."

"I don't know, Jafar. I mean, there's a reason why he's the chosen one. He must be pretty good to be the one the Cave named as the Diamond in the Rough. There might be more to him than we're expecting."

Iago flew to his perch and began preening his feathers. Jafar remained standing in the center of the chamber, thinking about what Iago had said. He had to admit that the bird had a point. He had to remember that there was more to this boy than meets the eye. Perhaps he had already underestimated him.

* * *

><p>Come nightfall, Jasmine found herself sneaking down side streets and back alleys with Aladdin, making their way back toward Aladdin's home. Neither of them were speaking. Aladdin had impressed upon her that silence was of the utmost importance. She tried to copy his stealthy movements, stepping where he stepped and trying not to make any noise. Even Abu was uncharacteristically quiet.<p>

Aladdin would stop every now and then as though listening or looking for something. This behavior became more frequent the closer they came to home. Abu also seemed to be on the alert, occasionally leaving Aladdin's shoulder to investigate something. Jasmine wasn't sure what they were looking for, but she was sure their actions had a purpose.

Finally, when they were so close to home that Jasmine could see the tower just above them, Aladdin stopped abruptly and grabbed her hand. He brought his mouth to her ear and whispered, "The place is being watched. Look—you see the guard?"

Jasmine looked in the direction Aladdin was indicating and did indeed see a man in regular clothes loitering in the street just ahead. He was not looking at them—rather, he was facing the tower.

Jasmine nodded, then whispered, "How do you know he's a guard?"

Aladdin began to lead her back the way they had come as he responded. "He may not have the uniform on, but I recognize his face. He's been after me one or two times in the past."

Jasmine nodded, realizing that this was the reason for their cautious behavior. "What are we going to do?"

Aladdin frowned. "We'll have to find somewhere else to stay. As long as they're watching the tower, we can't go back there. For now we can go back to the stable and lay low. We can look for another place to live in the morning."

Jasmine felt a pang of guilt. The worst had indeed come to pass—helping her had cost Aladdin his home, simple as it was. The realization made her stop in her tracks. Aladdin turned back to her, concerned. "I'm sorry, Aladdin." He just looked confused at her apology, so she continued. "It was your home, and now you can't go back."

Aladdin smiled at her in a reassuring manner. "Don't worry about it, Yasmin. It's happened before that they've found me out and I had to move. Besides," he said, cupping her cheek, "there's a saying that people have: 'Home is where the heart is.' So as long as I'm with you, I'll always be home." His smile became a playful grin.

Jasmine grinned despite herself. "That's a pretty good line."

"You like it?" Aladdin waggled his eyebrows and pressed his forehead to hers.

"No. It's too corny for my taste. Besides, I bet you tell that to all the girls. I'm sure they go wild for it."

"Come on, Yasmin. There's only one girl in the world that would inspire such heartfelt poetry in me."

"The old laundry woman?"

"No! You, of course. Not just any girl can affect my brain like that and make me so turned around that I think cheesy declarations of affection are a good idea. Just you."

Jasmine couldn't hold back a giggle. "Maybe you should work on that. I don't know if I can put up with that for long."

Aladdin's smiled softened. "I can't help it. But I hope you'll let me stay anyway."

Jasmine looked back into his eyes that were laughing but serious at the same time. She smiled as well. "I think I'll still keep you around," she said, then leaned in to kiss him.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Hello again! I know it's been a while since I've updated, but you know how it is. Real Life has a way of reminding one it exists. My updates may not be as quick as they were before, but rest assured that I will not abandon this fic. I already have the whole thing planned and outlined. I know exactly what I want to write, it's just finding the time to sit down and write it that's occasionally problematic. So thanks for sticking with me!**

**ln( )**


	7. Hard Hand

Two days.

That was how long it had been since Jasmine had eaten. She'd had some bread the evening before last, and that had been the last time food had passed her lips. It had been at least a week since she'd slept with a roof over her head, and more than a month since she'd last slept in the same place on consecutive nights.

They were after them. The guards had pursued her and Aladdin with a single-mindedness that Aladdin said he'd never seen before. They had to constantly be on their guard, moving around to be sure they weren't followed. They dared not show their faces in the market or any of the crowded areas of the city that the guards frequented. It was making food and rest extremely hard to come by.

She realized now that she'd had no conception of what it meant to be poor. She hadn't had the slightest idea what she was doing when she had told Aladdin all those weeks ago that she knew and accepted what she was getting herself into by staying with him. She now also knew that he had known that she was clueless and had tried to warn her, but she was nothing if not stubborn and had insisted.

She had known on some level that being poor meant that one would be hungry, and probably uncomfortable because sleeping on the street with scarcely a blanket couldn't exactly be luxurious. What she hadn't realized was that that hunger and discomfort were always there. Sleeping on the ground was cold and restless, and she ached after. Her stomach often pained her, and when it didn't, she felt lightheaded and weak. The sweat and dirt on her skin and hair was hard to rid herself of with nowhere secure to bathe, and she had only one set of clothes that was getting more ragged and dirty by the day. She was often tired.

This physical pain, however, was small in comparison to what she was feeling in her soul. She hadn't known what it would do to her that first time she dug through the trash to look for something to eat. She hadn't known what it would feel like to have people's eyes pass over her on the street, completely ignoring her, as though she were little more than an insect in their estimation. Some of them treated her like she was a rat, the disgust showing on their faces. She had once slept in an alley with a stray dog curled up not ten feet away. She couldn't help but sympathize with it.

Sometimes she didn't feel like a person at all. She was weary in body and soul, and she was very aware that she had only undergone several weeks of this. She could not imagine what it would do to her to live like this for years on end. Would she forget what it would feel like to be human? Would she have any dignity left?

The only thing that could make her feel good again was being with Aladdin. She was now waiting to meet him at some shady spot that they had agreed on that morning. As hard as this last month had been on her, it had been a hundred times harder on him. She was acutely aware of this, and also of the fact that a large part of his suffering was due to her. She could tell that he was trying to shield her from the worst of their circumstances. However, he was only partially succeeding and was sacrificing so much in the process. He still somehow managed to lift her spirits, just by being himself. But his cheerful disposition had begun to grow thin and cracked. He was still as kind to her as ever, but he couldn't always bring a smile to his face anymore.

Jasmine had taken it upon herself to do as much as she possibly could for him. He made her happy, and she wanted to do the same for him. She had already insisted that he allow her to do some things—to share the load and try to pull her own weight by looking for food, scouting for sleeping spots, or other odd tasks. But she didn't have the experience or skill to provide for them most of the time, so most of the work fell to him. Sometimes the only thing she felt she could do was to just be there for him, for emotional support. She felt that it wasn't enough, but she didn't know what else she could do.

That, of course, was a lie. There _was_ something she could do. She could go back to the palace, turn herself in. Then the guards would stop looking for him, or at least she could order that they cease their persecution. And then she would be married off to a prince, and she would never see him again.

She had reconsidered the idea more than once in the past month. How long did she really think she could get away with this, anyway? She wasn't yet willing to give up, though. She still wanted to be with Aladdin more than anything else in the world, and she was going to fight for that. But she was going to have to come up with something to do about the situation she had gotten them both into, and soon.

Aladdin was late. She hated it when he was late—she had no way of knowing what had become of him. It was entirely possible that the guards could have captured him. Whenever he failed to make their rendezvous on time, her stomach tied itself in knots and she would feel sick with worry. She knew that he felt the same way whenever she was out of his sight. She had been late herself once and she had found him pacing in circles, fists clenched, mouth set in a hard frown. When he finally caught sight of her he'd run to her immediately, gathered her into a tight embrace, and kissed her fervently. By this she knew that he was as anxious as she.

He couldn't always help being late though. For some reason, the guards seemed to focus on him more, and he often had to shake them off his trail before he could make his way to her. Jasmine found this strange. If they were after her, why not go for her directly? Why pursue Aladdin so closely? Perhaps it was just because they didn't like him. She wasn't sure though, which was another reason for her hesitation to return to the palace. Something told her that if she gave herself up, Aladdin might not necessarily be safe even then.

Jasmine heard a noise above her, and looked up in time to see Aladdin dismounting from the rooftop. She was there as soon as he touched the ground, embracing him. He wrapped his arms around her as well and leaned back against the wall behind him, kissing the top of her head.

After her initial relief to see him safe and sound had subsided, Jasmine noticed that he was breathing hard and trembling a little. She pulled back enough to see his face. "They chased you here, didn't they?"

Aladdin nodded. "Don't worry, I gave them the slip. We should get moving though, before they figure out which direction I actually took."

He grabbed her hand and started to lead her back down the alley, but Jasmine hesitated. "Where's Abu?"

As if in answer to her question, she heard the monkey chattering, and she looked around to see him seated on an awning just ahead. He scampered down and leapt onto her shoulder, then patted her head with his little hand. She and Aladdin both smiled and started forward again.

They walked in silence, but always hand in hand. They were typically quiet while on the move, so as not to alert anyone to their presence. They walked at least a mile before they stopped in the place where Aladdin had decided they would spend the night. It was little more than a stoop that opened onto a narrow alley, but there was a small awning above it that offered some protection from the elements. Jasmine immediately unrolled the mat they had acquired, then took Aladdin's hand, trying to pull him down to sit. He needed to rest.

He didn't join her on the mat, however, until he was satisfied the coast was clear. He finally flopped down next to her with a sigh, then looked over at her and smiled. "How was your day, dear?"

She smiled back. "Pretty much the same as yesterday, honey. Only with more guards chasing us."

"Well," Aladdin replied, reaching into his bag, "I have something that might make you feel better." He drew out half a loaf of bread and handed it to her, but Jasmine did not take it, instead fixing him with an appraising stare. Aladdin cleared his throat and tried to smile carelessly at her. "I already ate. What do you think happened to the rest of the loaf?"

Jasmine crossed her arms. "I don't know what became of it, but I'm pretty sure you didn't eat it."

Aladdin opened his mouth like he was going to protest, but Jasmine just gave him that look, the one that said that he had better not lie to her, and he stopped. He looked at the ground and sighed. "All right. I gave my half to our two little friends. I think the boy is sick—he didn't look well. And I haven't been around to help them out lately, so…" He trailed off and shrugged. He didn't need to tell her that he felt bad that he hadn't done anything for them in several weeks. Jasmine felt the same. She hated to think that the two children had been relying on them for a while, and now they were alone again. She couldn't fault Aladdin for giving away their scarce resources.

"Yasmin? Here," Aladdin said, holding the bread out to her. Jasmine suppressed a sigh.

She hadn't eaten in two days. She couldn't even remember the last time Aladdin had eaten.

Jasmine met his eyes and gave him a soft smile. "You eat it." Aladdin opened his mouth to protest, but she silenced him with a finger against his lips. "You gave your bread to the children. So let me give mine to you." She leaned forward and kissed him, long and slow.

He did not protest anymore after that, and ate the bread in silence. Jasmine busied herself trying to fix a hole in their one blanket, but she had neither needle nor thread, so there was little she could do about it. Her mind, however, was elsewhere.

This pattern of living they had got into could not continue. They weren't getting enough sleep or food to keep going like this. The two of them were wearing out quickly. It didn't look like the guards were going to give up any time soon, and sooner or later they would catch them. What could they do? There was nowhere in Agrabah that they could hide, no place within the city walls that was safe…

The sudden realization made her heart leap and then sink. There was only one thing to do. She turned to Aladdin, who had finished the bread and was now stroking Abu absent-mindedly. "We have to leave Agrabah."

Aladdin turned to her. There was no surprise on his face, no confusion in his demeanor, only sadness in his eyes. She realized then that he had already known this, already come to this conclusion—but he, like herself, was reluctant to leave the city that had been their home all their lives.

Aladdin took her hand in his, rubbing the back of her hand with his thumb. "It's going to be difficult. And very dangerous. In fact, I'm not sure that we can do it, even if we wanted to. There's a hundred miles of desert between here and the nearest city. It will be impossible to make that journey without supplies, which we don't have and can't get."

"We have to find a way. There's no other choice. If we stay…" Jasmine trailed off, but she was sure that Aladdin knew what she would say. She knew that the same concerns were on his mind as well.

Aladdin's brow creased in a frown. "I know. But there's just no way to do it without money. I'd have to pick a lot of pockets just to get the bare minimum of what we would need, and I don't feel comfortable crossing a desert on the bare minimum. No room for mistakes."

Jasmine sighed. Why hadn't she thought to bring any money at all from the palace? She couldn't believe how naïve and stupid she'd been—

Wait a minute. But she _had_ brought something with her from the palace. Something very valuable…

"My clothes," she whispered, the beginnings of a plan dawning on her.

"What?" Aladdin said, clearly confused.

"My clothes," she said again, louder. "We can sell my clothes, the ones I was wearing when I met you. They're silk, which is very valuable. And the earrings are gold, too. That ought to get us enough money to buy what we need."

"I don't suppose that you're forgetting that we had to leave your clothes in the tower, which is _still_ being watched? They might not even be there anymore—the guards may have found them."

"I doubt it. They're very well hidden, and the guards wouldn't be looking for something like that, I think."

Aladdin still seemed skeptical. "But they are looking for us, and the tower is being watched."

"So we'll just have to steal the clothes back. Are you a thief or aren't you?"

Suddenly Aladdin grinned. "I suppose I do have some skills in that area. All right, you've convinced me. But I'm going to need your help if we're going to pull this off."

Jasmine smiled. "Bring it on."


	8. 2 of Clubs

"You ready?"

Yasmin nodded, but she looked nervous. "Aladdin, if this doesn't go well—"

"Everything's gonna be fine. How could we fail? The two of us against those idiot guards? They're totally outmatched."

Aladdin was suddenly interrupted by irate squabbling.

"Sorry, Abu, I mean the three of us. See? Piece of cake."

Yasmin let out the breath she'd been holding. "You're right. We can do this. I can do this."

"That's the spirit. I'm gonna go set phase one in motion. See you at the rendezvous point." Aladdin hesitated before leaving, though. He instead wrapped her in his arms and kissed her, long and slow. He could feel her trembling. "Good luck," he whispered in her ear, then sped off into the night.

He and Abu snuck up on the guard on watch duty without any trouble. It was a simple matter to get his attention—Aladdin simply kicked a rock and made a noise, and the man whirled around. Aladdin smiled and waved at him, and just as the guard was realizing what was happening, Abu jumped on his head and shoved his turban down over his eyes. Aladdin lingered just long enough to see Jasmine scale the ladder to the roof behind the man's back, then he and Abu ran like mad as the cursing guard worked to extricate himself from his turban.

As he ran, he heard the man calling for assistance from the other guards stationed in the area. He chanced a look back, and saw that they were converging on him more quickly than he'd anticipated.

"Abu! Time to disappear!"

Abu squawked in agreement. They turned the corner, and Aladdin used an old cart to vault up onto the awning just above it. He and Abu lay flat on top of the awning, where they couldn't be seen by the guards. And they were just in time: five guards rounded the corner just after they had concealed themselves. Aladdin lay there, heart pounding, panting for breath as quietly as possible, and listened to what the guards were saying.

"Hey, where'd he go?"

"He's got to be around here somewhere. You two take that way and the rest of us will go the other."

"Wait just a minute, now, who made you the boss?" Aladdin recognized Razoul's voice. "I'm the captain and I'm giving the orders here. I think that he doubled back. Me and Abdullah will go back and check the tower. The rest of you keep looking around here."

"Yes, sir. Sorry, sir."

Aladdin cursed under his breath. It was just his luck that Razoul, the captain of the guard and the only halfway intelligent one in the whole city, would be after them tonight. It was time to improvise. He whispered new orders to Abu, and the monkey saluted before moving off to execute them. Aladdin chanced a look down at the street and saw four guards searching the area and one more heading back down the street with Razoul. He counted the seconds, clenching and unclenching his fists in impatience.

He didn't have long to wait, as he soon heard a simian shriek from a block away. The guards immediately rushed en masse in that direction. Seeing that they were suitably distracted, Aladdin pulled himself up onto the roof and ran as fast as he could for the tower. He knew a shorter way than what Razoul was taking, but the man had a head start on him. He pushed himself faster, almost reckless in his headlong dash across the rooftops. He had to get to Yasmin before they did.

Aladdin made it to the tower in record time, flying through the door and taking the stairs two at a time. He just barely remembered to duck in time to avoid hitting his head on the exposed beams. He burst into the room at the top, gasping for breath, and took in the scene before him.

The room that had once been his home stood almost as he had left it, deserted but for one person. Aladdin was beyond relieved to see Yasmin standing framed in the window, holding a bundle in her arms. She looked frightened at first, but when she realized it was Aladdin, she was noticeably relieved.

"Aladdin! I thought you were a—"

"I know, but they're right behind me. We have to get out of here." He grabbed her hand and led her back to the stairs, but just as they reached them they heard footsteps and saw a shadow moving on the wall. It was too late. The guards had arrived.

Aladdin pulled Yasmin back into the room, thinking fast. There was no cover in the room itself, nowhere to hide. The only other exit was through the window…

Aladdin jumped up on the broken wall and looked down. They could make it…if they were lucky.

He turned back to Yasmin, whose eyes were still fixed on the stairs where the guards were drawing ever closer. What Aladdin had in mind would quite literally require a tremendous leap of faith on her part. He held out his hand to her.

"Do you trust me?"

The girl looked at him with fear and confusion in her eyes, but a look on her face that clearly said, 'What kind of stupid question is that?'

"Yes," she answered without hesitation, and put her hand in his.

"Then jump!" he shouted, and without further ado, he pulled her out of the window into space.

As his feet left the stone wall, Aladdin looked ahead and saw the palace silhouetted against the backdrop of moon and stars. For a moment, he almost felt like he was flying. Then gravity kicked in and they began to freefall. Yasmin shrieked, and Aladdin almost did the same. He felt like his stomach was trying to make a bid for freedom through his throat, and he could feel his heart pounding like there was no tomorrow—and for all Aladdin knew in that moment, maybe there wouldn't be.

Luckily, they fell right through the broken dome below them and into the cloth hanging that he had been aiming for, and Aladdin felt a split second of relief—before he heard the hanging rip and he and Jasmine were falling once again.

Aladdin barely had time to utter a prayer though before he and Yasmin landed on something surprisingly soft. By some miracle, there was a pile of sand there to break their fall. Aladdin didn't waste any time on feeling relieved. He jumped up, pulling Yasmin with him, and ran for the exit.

"Gotcha!" Aladdin heard someone yell, and in the same moment he felt a hard tug on his vest pulling him off balance. A hand closed over his throat and squeezed, lifting him right off the ground.

"Well, well, looks like I've caught myself a street rat!" the man snarled, and Aladdin recognized his voice. It was Razoul. He must have sent the other one in to flush them out, and he'd just waited down here to catch them when they flew the coop.

Aladdin pulled at Razoul's hand, trying to twist himself free, but Razoul was the stronger of them by far. Aladdin tried to redouble his efforts, but he was already out of breath from running and the hand closing off his windpipe was making it nearly impossible to get any air. He began to see blackness at the edges of his vision.

Razoul seemed to sense him weakening because he cackled. "It's the dungeon for you, bo—"

CRASH!

Aladdin heard a sound like something shattering. Razoul yelled and his hand slackened its grip just enough to allow Aladdin to draw a breath. He took advantage of the opening and slammed his elbow into his captor's stomach. He heard the man grunt in pain as he released Aladdin's throat.

Aladdin looked around for Yasmin and found her standing near, holding the remnants of a broken clay urn, fragments of which were scattered all around. A huge smile split his face.

"Way to go, sweetheart!" he said. Then he grabbed her hand once more and they ran off into the night, followed only by sound of Razoul's foul cursing.

* * *

><p>Aladdin was more tired than he'd ever been in his life. It had been a long and trying week. Starting it off right, they'd infiltrated the tower and stolen Yasmin's clothes right under the guards' noses. Then they had worked around the clock to lay their plans without being caught by the guards, who seemed to take the tower escapade as a personal insult and had redoubled their efforts to capture them. This morning, everything had finally been in place, and they had sold the clothes.<p>

The clothes had been easier to sell than he'd expected. Yasmin had told him what each item was worth, so he wouldn't be cheated by the shopkeeper they'd carefully selected. His old friend, the beggar, had been able to help with that. He knew more or less a little bit of everything that went on in Agrabah. He knew which shops did some fencing on the side and which merchants wouldn't ask questions, and he also pointed out which ones would be able to afford their price. Then all Aladdin had to do was steal some nicer clothes from a laundry line in the more well-to-do part of town to dress the part.

When he'd walked into that shop he'd been nervous, but the merchant was obviously fooled by his appearance and invited him in to talk business. When he saw the merchandise, however, he gave Aladdin a hard look. Aladdin was afraid that he was suspicious, but he met the man's gaze with his face carefully composed to betray nothing. True to the beggar's description of him though, the man didn't ask where the items had come from, nor why Aladdin wanted to get rid of them. He simply examined the clothes, scoffed at their quality, and offered Aladdin a ridiculously low sum. That had started off the long round of bargaining that the beggar had warned him he'd have to endure, and endure it he did. In the end, after haggling, arguing, bluffing, and beating the price up, Aladdin closed the deal with a profit he, at least, was satisfied with. He hoped it would be enough.

He and Yasmin both knew that they needed to get out of Agrabah as soon as possible after they sold the clothes. The items were very distinctive, and it was likely that they would be recognized as hers. They would be a clue for anyone smart enough to follow it to find them. They would need to be on their way early the very next morning.

Therefore, the rest of the day had been spent shopping for all the supplies that they did not yet have. It felt very strange indeed to Aladdin to buy so many things with actual money in one day. It was an almost surreal experience to peruse merchants' wares dressed in fine clothes as a legitimate customer. He was almost glad when they were finished and he could go back to sneaking down side streets.

Now dusk was falling, and Aladdin and Yasmin were in a stable, packing up their supplies and getting everything ready to go for the morning. They spoke little—they were both tired—but Aladdin watched the girl out of the corner of his eye as she loaded a bag with food. There was something bothering him that had been growing steadily stronger all week. He wasn't sure what he wanted to do about it though, so for now he kept silent. But he knew that he was running out of time.

Just as the sun slipped below the horizon, a man arrived at the stable with a camel. He looked around until he spotted Aladdin, then led the camel over to them. Aladdin greeted him and the man nodded back, then began loading the goods onto the camel. Aladdin gave him a hand, but they didn't say much to each other. Their deal had already been worked out three days ago, when Aladdin had hired him.

Finally, when all the supplies had been loaded, the man held out his hand and Aladdin gave him what they had agreed: half of the pay for hiring the camel and driver. The man again did not speak, but only counted the money. Satisfied, he nodded to Aladdin and led the camel away.

Aladdin wrapped an arm around Yasmin's shoulders. "Well, that's it. Now the only thing left to do is get some rest. Big day tomorrow, and all."

Yasmin smiled at him. "I know. I'm so tired, but I don't know if I can sleep. I'm too excited. Or maybe I'm nervous…"

"Maybe both. I know I am." Aladdin sighed. "C'mon, Abu! Let's go find a place to sleep." The monkey hopped onto his shoulder and yawned. "Yeah, I feel you, little friend."

Aladdin stepped out of the stable, his arm still wrapped around Yasmin's shoulders. He wondered what to do about Abu. The monkey was not made for the desert. It would be very hard on him. He wasn't even sure he and Yasmin could make it, let alone Abu. There were all kinds of dangers outside the city walls that Abu had never faced…

Aladdin was still pondering this when he turned down an alley and nearly tripped over something in the dark. The something squeaked and moved, curling up in a ball.

"Aladdin!" Yasmin gasped. "Look! It's our little friends!"

And so it was. The thing that Aladdin had tripped over was the little boy, and nearby was the girl. It seemed that they were trying to sleep there, in the dark alley. They had shrunk into the wall at the pair's approach, but when they heard Yasmin's voice they sprang up immediately.

Yasmin enveloped the girl in a hug, while Aladdin knelt down and put his hand on the boy's shoulder. "Are you all right? I didn't hurt you, did I?" The boy, whose name they had discovered was Rami, shook his head, grinning. "Good. I'm sorry about that."

The boy looked down and dug his big toe into the dirt. "'S okay."

Aladdin stole a glance at Yasmin, who hadn't let go of the girl, Najida, yet. Even though it was dark and he couldn't see her face well, Aladdin could tell that she was holding back tears by the tremble in her voice.

"I'm so glad we bumped into you," she said. "I was so afraid that we wouldn't see you before…" Yasmin's voice broke and she fell silent.

Aladdin took a deep breath and continued where she left off. "We're leaving Agrabah," he said.

There was a moment of silence in which he could sense the children's confused gazes on him.

"When?" asked the little girl.

"Tomorrow morning," Yasmin whispered.

"Why are you going away?" asked Rami, and his voice was choked with suppressed emotion. Aladdin felt his heart clench. He could almost hear the unsaid, 'Don't you like us anymore?' in the child's tone. Aladdin knew from experience that boys that young didn't yet understand that when someone leaves their life, it's not necessarily because they want to.

Aladdin placed both hands on Rami's shoulders, and the boy looked down to hide his tears. "We can't stay here anymore because it's too dangerous. Bad people are looking for us, and if they caught us they would lock us in the dungeon and throw away the key. If we stay here in Agrabah, we would go to prison and you would never see us again. But if we leave, we would be free. The bad people wouldn't find us, and maybe they'll eventually forget about us. Then we would be able to come back, and we could see each other again."

Aladdin put his hand under Rami's chin, feeling the tears that had dripped down his face, and lifted the child's face so he could look him in the eye. He gave the boy the most reassuring smile he could manage. "So don't worry. We'll see each other again someday. Just keep your chin up, kid."

Rami lunged forward and wrapped his arms around Aladdin's neck, sobbing into his shoulder. Aladdin rubbed his back, trying to soothe him, but knowing that there was little comfort he could give to ease their parting. He knew the children felt abandoned by two of the only people who had ever cared about them. Even he felt like he was abandoning these kids, though he knew that there was nothing he could do about it. He felt tears pricking his own eyes.

Aladdin looked over and saw that Najida had also buried her face in Yasmin's skirt, shoulders shaking. Yasmin stroked her hair, tears shining in her eyes. She looked at Aladdin and caught him watching her. "Are you sure we can't…" she whispered, trailing off before finishing her thought. Aladdin knew what she wanted to say. He shook his head. There was no way they could bring two little kids with them across the desert. They'd never make it.

Abu, realizing the gravity of the situation, came up and laid a little hand on Aladdin's knee, comforting him. His funny face looked very serious in the dark of the alley. Suddenly, Aladdin knew what to do. He could solve both of his problems at once, but it would be hard to convince everyone, including himself, that this was the best decision.

He took a deep breath and looked down at the monkey. "Abu, I have a job for you." Abu immediately sprang to attention. "Your mission, should you choose to accept, is to take care of these two pipsqueaks."

Abu let out a surprised squawk. Aladdin heard Yasmin gasp, and Rami stopped crying with a startled hiccup.

Aladdin let go of the boy and reached instead for Abu. The little monkey grabbed the proffered hand and looked up at Aladdin, clearly confused. Aladdin smiled sadly at him. "C'mon little buddy. They need your help. And the desert is no place for a monkey."

Abu seemed to consider this for a moment, looking at Rami, then back to Aladdin, then back to the little boy. Finally, the monkey sighed and jumped up on the Rami's shoulder. The child grinned, excited, and reached up to touch Abu's tail. Najida also came closer to see. Aladdin reached over and ruffled the fur on Abu's head. "I'm gonna miss you, Abu," he whispered. Abu grabbed his hand in both his little ones and held on until Aladdin pulled away to stand up.

He fished around in his pocket and found a few coins, which he gave to Najida. She whispered her thanks with tears brimming in her eyes and wet tracks on her cheeks. "Don't spend it all in one place, alright?" he said, still trying to keep a brave face.

He felt Yasmin take his hand, and he looked at her. Her eyes were bright with tears, but she too was trying to be strong for the children. She smiled at them and gave Rami the loaf of bread that she had originally purchased for their own supper. "It's time for us to go now," she said, and her voice shook a little. "You three take care of yourselves, and each other, and perhaps we'll see one another again someday."

She and Aladdin hugged and kissed each of the children and scratched Abu behind the ears one last time. Then Aladdin took Yasmin's hand and led her away, down the alley and around a corner, out of sight. He didn't look back. He was afraid that he wouldn't be able to withstand the sight of the children and the monkey alone in the dark night. Blinking back tears, he looked at Yasmin. The moonlight shimmered in her eyes, and in the wetness on her cheeks.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: So apparently these kids have names in the TV series, which I haven't seen. I decided to ignore that, however, and give them my own names. According to my sources, Rami means 'loving' and Najida means 'courageous, one who accomplishes difficult tasks.' I thought that would be more or less appropriate for them. And no, we haven't seen the last of these two, but you'll just have to hang in there to find out what happens to them. Thanks for reading and reviewing, you guys!**

**ln()**


	9. Queen of Hearts

Aladdin knew that sleep would be difficult to find tonight. It didn't matter that they had a roof over their heads for once (since they had taken shelter in an abandoned house on the edge of the city), or that they had more blankets than usual from their new supplies. It didn't even make a difference that he was tired and needed rest. There were simply too many thoughts and feelings swimming through his mind for him to relax.

He was still feeling down after seeing the children. Logically, he knew that they weren't his family and he owed them nothing, and also that he had already done his best to help them out despite this and despite the fact that he was little better off than they were. He knew this, but the fact remained that he still felt like he had failed them somehow. Ever since that day he had taken a whipping for them, Aladdin had felt responsible for those two kids. He'd grown fond of them in the short time he'd known them, in no small part because he saw himself in them. He remembered very well his own hard upbringing in the streets of Agrabah, and knew what it was like for these two. But they had one advantage that he had not: each other. Aladdin could see that they relied on each other to get them through each day. They each had someone to love and love them in return as long as they were together. Aladdin hoped it would be enough.

He also felt sore about leaving Abu behind. Abu may be only a bad-tempered monkey to most people, but he was Aladdin's oldest friend. He was really going to miss that little terror. It was for the best, though. He didn't think that Abu would be able to make the dangerous desert crossing. He was certain that the children would take good care of him though, and the kleptomaniac monkey would be of use to the kids as well. Aladdin was pretty sure that Abu didn't fully understand why he was being left behind, but he hoped the monkey would forgive him for it anyway.

All these things plus the upcoming journey were weighing on his mind and heart, making him restless, but these paled in comparison to the main reason for him losing sleep. It was an issue that had yet to be addressed, but now was the time to do it and he had no idea how to start. He watched Yasmin as she spread out the mat and blankets and readied herself for sleep, taking down her long hair and combing it out with her fingers. Aladdin reflected that however this turned out, this may be the last time he saw her like this. He felt a sudden, fierce desire to take her in his arms and kiss her as deeply as he could, but he restrained himself. It wouldn't make what he had to do next any easier.

Yasmin turned around and caught him looking at her. She met his gaze and raised one eyebrow, questioning what he was staring at with a look. Aladdin's time was up. He had to do it now.

"Yasmin, do you ever think about going back home and making up with your father?" he asked, working to keep his voice steady.

Yasmin's eyes widened in surprise. For a moment, it looked like she would just wave the question away, but something about Aladdin's tone and manner and the way he had mentioned her father must have alerted her that Aladdin wasn't going to let this go, because instead she sighed and looked at him with a searching glance.

"Aladdin, why are you asking me this?"

Aladdin didn't hesitate. "Because I think you should consider it, if you haven't already. But I think you already have, haven't you?"

Yasmin did not answer the question, but again returned with one of her own. "Why do you think I should go back?" She said it almost like a challenge, like she expected an answer she wouldn't like.

"I never said—" Aladdin automatically reacted defensively, but stopped himself. He hadn't said it, but that's what he had meant anyway. He took a deep breath, then let it out in a rush of air. "Alright. Yes, I do think that. The way I see it, you're risking your life needlessly. You've lived in poverty for weeks, and now you're planning to flee with me across a hostile desert, and if we live through that, which isn't guaranteed, we have only more long years of poverty to look forward to."

Aladdin paused, unsure how to proceed. "You told me why you ran away," he continued hesitantly. "You don't want to get married. But is it worth throwing your life away for it? You still have a home and a father. I'm sure he misses you. I know I would miss you if I were in his place. Maybe he'll be so happy to see you back that he won't make you get married…"

Aladdin swallowed hard and looked down. He couldn't go on. He was afraid that if he did, she'd sense his insincerity. He should want her to go home. He should want her to make up with her father and live the life she deserved, rich, comfortable, and happy. And a part of him did want all that, which was the part he was trying to give voice to now. But another part, a part larger than he wished to admit, wanted her to stay. He wanted her to stay for purely selfish reasons.

He loved her. Despite his original intentions and the precautions he'd taken, he'd fallen in love with her anyway. It was so hard not to though; he just couldn't help it! He'd never met any girl so smart and fun, not to mention beautiful. He realized that this did nothing to reconcile the warring factions of his heart. Because he loved her, he wanted her to go home and be happy. Also because he loved her, he wanted her to stay with him. Or, more accurately, he wanted to be with her, wherever she went, but he could see no way of that ever happening if she went home. Her father wouldn't want him around. Besides, he had to leave Agrabah. There was no longer any choice for him—it was that or the dungeons. But she could still stay here, under her father's protection.

He had acted just now on what he knew to be the right course of action, the nobler option. Wanting her to stay with him was completely self-centered, and he knew that, but it still hurt. He really didn't want to be alone again, as he had been for so many years. Especially not now after he'd known, even for so short a time, what it was like to have someone there for him, with him, whom he could talk to and rely on. Maybe _that_ was the real reason he hadn't made any close friends before. The inevitable parting hurt too much.

Yasmin was silent for a long time. Aladdin didn't look up, but he felt her eyes on him, studying him. Finally, she spoke. "Aladdin, look at me."

Aladdin lifted his eyes until they met hers, but he could not tell what she was thinking. Her expression was guarded and betrayed nothing.

She continued. "Do you really want me to go back home and leave you? Is that really what you want?"

Aladdin tried to hold her gaze to show his sincerity, but he couldn't help glancing down as he answered, "Yes."

Yasmin's expression did not change. Her eyes seemed to pierce his very body to peer into his soul. "I don't believe you."

Aladdin started to protest, to begin his argument again, but she crossed the space between them and held a finger up to his lips, silencing him.

"I think I know why you're telling me this now, and I owe you an explanation." She sighed and removed her hand from his mouth, but Aladdin remained silent. He respected her wish to explain her side of things, but he was still convinced that his was the best course of action.

"You're right, Aladdin. I do miss my father. I'm certain he misses me too. He was the only person I cared for, but I know he won't be with me forever. By law, I cannot inherit…his wealth after his death because I am a woman. But my husband could. So you see, maybe he would push my marriage back a few years, but I would eventually have to get married to someone of his choosing. That's just the way things are."

Yasmin paused, then continued slowly. "Maybe I don't really know anything about what it's like to be poor. I'm still learning about that, the hard way. But _you_ don't really know what it's like to be rich. It's not exactly the idyllic paradise you imagine, at least not for women like me. I was _trapped_, Aladdin. I _had_ to marry someone, but none of the suitors that were acceptable to my father were acceptable to me."

Suddenly, Yasmin became agitated and spoke faster, her fists clenching, eyes narrowed. "Do you think that they came to call on me because they wanted to get to know me? Of course not! All they cared about is that my father was wealthy and powerful, and they would stand to inherit all that if I were their wife. They came to me with words of love, even though they didn't know the first thing about me! They only told me what they thought I wanted to hear. _None_ of them cared. So I chased them all off."

Aladdin was a bit stunned. He had never heard Yasmin talk so much about her past, and he had not imagined the level of disgust she felt for her arranged marriage. He felt like a fool—he really should have realized all this before now.

Yasmin wasn't finished yet. "The night before I ran away, I realized something. It was as if I could see my whole life stretching out before me. One of these days, my father would choose a suitor for me. I would be married, duty-bound to show devotion to a man who cares nothing for me, and locked away behind walls for the rest of my life, as I have always been. I knew what that would do to me. I would be sad at first, I'm sure, but I'd learn to suppress my emotions. I'd end up cold and callous, like other women I'd seen in the same situation.

"I realized in that moment that I would do anything to prevent that future. I was afraid, and maybe I acted rashly, but I know my reasoning wasn't clouded. I did the only thing I could do to have my freedom and take my future into my own hands. I ran away."

Yasmin stopped then and looked down. Silence reigned. Aladdin didn't know what to say, so he remained speechless. He realized now just how clueless he was about this girl. He was amazed at the risk she had taken. Perhaps it was foolish to run away, but it was also extremely brave. And hearing now for the first time why she had really done it, he knew that it was a cause worth fighting for. He may not understand her situation completely, but he at least knew what it was like to be trapped. After all, what wouldn't he give to be free of the guards' persecution and the stigma everyone held against him because he was a poor thief? Wasn't that what this entire venture was all about, risking everything to run away and start a new life?

His thoughts were interrupted when Yasmin suddenly looked up into his eyes and took a small step closer. "You seem to think that I don't want to get married, but that's not entirely true. I just don't want to marry someone I don't love and who doesn't love me. You ask me why I sentence myself to a life of poverty and hardship that I do not have to endure, but to me the answer is easy." Yasmin closed the short distance between them and put her hands in his. "In this life, I've finally found what I really want. I have my choice. I have freedom. And I have you."

Then her lips were on his, kissing him with more passion than he'd ever felt from her before. Aladdin responded in kind, wrapping his arms around her back and holding her close as she put her arms around his neck to bring herself that much closer. Their tongues twined and danced until they broke apart gasping for breath, only to join their mouths again almost immediately. Every inch of Aladdin's skin seemed more sensitive; he felt every little move and touch Yasmin made. A fire sprang to life in his belly, the heat growing and spreading throughout his body with every muffled sound of pleasure from Yasmin.

Finally they broke apart for air once more. Yasmin looked up and met Aladdin's gaze, and he could see an answering fire in her eyes.

"So," she said, slightly breathless, "do you still want me to leave?"

"No," Aladdin answered, and he meant it. He was no longer conflicted. They had both made their choice, and the reasons were clear to him now. "I love you, Yasmin."

The girl smiled, and Aladdin thought he would never tire of seeing it. "I know," she said, and kissed him again, long and slow. When she pulled away, she said, "And I hope you know now that I love you, Aladdin. But if you don't, allow me to show you…" And with that she kissed him again, but with more of the passion from before. Her hands tangled in his hair as his roamed her back, tracing her shoulders and spine through the cloth of her dress.

Then Yasmin slowly and deliberately rolled her hips against his, and Aladdin, caught completely by surprise, broke the kiss to bite back a groan. He was suddenly very aware of the blood rushing to his groin. "Yasmin, what—" he began, but she pulled his head back to hers and resumed kissing him. After a second, her hands left his hair and traveled across his collarbones, pushing his vest off his shoulders. Aladdin broke the kiss again.

"Yasmin," he breathed, but couldn't think how to word what he was trying to ask. He settled instead for asking the question with his eyes.

The girl just smiled at him. "Let me show you," she said again, and kissed him as she gently pulled him down with her onto the blankets.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Sorry, not a lot of action in this chapter, but I felt I had to include this for the sake of character development. Don't you worry though—I have plenty planned for the next one. I think you all know what's coming up next: Escape from Agrabah!**

**However, you may have to wait a bit for the next chapter. Since it's the holiday season, I have a lot of things going on and I probably won't be able to update this for a while. I know you guys will understand that, and I thank you all for being patient and for reading and reviewing.**


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